Sandals



SeP- 23, 1969 TATuo FuKuoKA SANDALS Filed Dec. 13, 1967 INVENTOR TATUO FUKUOKA ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,468,040 SANDALS Tatuo Fukuoka, 21, 3-chome, Minami, Fukushima-cho, Tokushima, Japan Filed Dec. 13, 1967, Ser. No. 690,121 Int. Cl. A43b 3/12 U.S. Cl. 36-11.5 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A low-cost plastic sandal having a novel sole provided with specially-formed depressions, ridges, and raised edges on its top surface conforming to the contour of a wearefs foot, said sole design providing support to improve the posture and comfort of the wearer, as well as ensuring that the sandal is maintained securely on the wearefs foot and does not come off during walking or running.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention.--The present invention relates to footwear, and more particularly to shoes of the sandal type.

Description of the prz'or art-Sandals are Very popular in this country for casual wear and lounging, as Well as for use at beaches and swimming pools, primarly because they are comfortable and can be slipped on and off the wearer's feet quickly and with a minimum of effort. Unfortunately, however, conventional Sandals have a tendency to inadvertently come off the wearefs foot during walking or movement, which is disconcerting and a continuous source of inconvenience and annoyance. Moreover, and unlike the present invention, conventional Sandals do not conform to the contour of the wearer's foot and do not provide the support required for maximum comfort.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the improved sandal Structure comprising the present invention, the sandal sole is provided with depressions and inclined longitudinal edge portions on its top surface which provide support for the wearer's foot for improved posture and greater comfort, and which contoured sole prevents relative shifting of the sandal and foot to minimze the possibility of said sandal coming off during walking or movement.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a novel unitary sandal Structure which can be economically produced in a single piece by means of a plastic injection molding machine or other sigh speed automatic equipment.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel sole structure which is particularly well adapted for use in Sandals and similar casual-type footwear, and which improved sole design can also be advantageously utilized in shoes of other types and styles.

Further objects of the present invention are to provide a new and improved sandal Structure which is durable and long-lasting, which is unique and attractive in appearance, and which is otherwise particularly well adapted for its intended purposes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawing, Wherein the same parts are designated by the same reference numerals in all of the views:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the improved sandal;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view through the sandal sole, taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional view through the sandal taken alone line 3-3 of FIG. 1; and

3,468,040\ Patented Sept. 23, 1969 "ice FIG. 4 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now more particularly to FIG. 1 of the drawing, the numeral 10 designates a sandal sole molded of plastic or similar resilient and elastic rubber-like material, said sole having a heel end 11 and a toe end 12, and'being shaped to conform generally to the outline of a human foot. Formed on and projecting upwardly from the edge portions of said sole intermediate its length are strap elements 13 which are designed to extend upwardly over the instep of a wearer's foot, said straps merging with forward strap elements 14 in the illustrated embodiment of the invention. Said straps are formed integrally With the sole 10, the entire sandal being cast in a single piece as described, but it is to be understood that the exact design and arrangement of said straps is not a critilcal feature of the present invention.

As best appears in FIG. 2, the underside of the sole 10 preferably curves upwardly somewhat toward the toe end 11, and the heel portion is raised as shown.

The top surface of said sole 10 is provided with a dished area or depression 16 at the heel end thereof which is designed to accommodate the heel of a wearer's foot and surrounding said heel area is a raised edge 17, the resilient and elastic nature of said sole material permitting said heel portion to yield somewhat to closely conform to the shape of the wearer's foot. Said sole 10 is also provided with a gradual depression or concavity 18 in the forward portion thereof which is designed to accommodate the ball and forward portion of the wearefs foot, and surrounding said depression 18 is a gradually inclined raised edge 19. Thus there is provided a novel sandal sole having dished portions therein comforming to the natural contour of a human foot, and which sole is provided with raised peripheral edge portions which cooperate to support the weareris foot for improved posture and greater comfort than is provided by conventional flat-soled Sandals. Moreover, said depressions and raised portions prevent the wearefs foot from slipping or shifting in the sandal, and eliminate the possibility of said sandal coming off during walking or running.

In addition to the specially-formed sole depressions and raised edge portions hereinabove described, it will be seen in FIGS. 2 and 4 that the sole 10 characterizing the present invention is provided with a rounded protrusion 21 adapted to fit under the plantar arch of the wearefs foot, to provide support therefor. Also, and referring to FIGS. 1-3 of the drawing, a transverse protrusion or ridge 22 is formed in the forward portion of said sole and is designed to fit beneath and support the juncture of the wearer's toes and the ball portion of his foot, said protruding ridge further preventing relative movement of the foot and sandal and ensuring that the sandal doesnt inadvertently slip off when the Wearer moves.

As hereinabove mentioned, the novel sandal comprising the present invention is formed of plastic or similar low cost material that can be injection molded with high speed machinery. Because said sandal is designed to be molded in a single piece, including the integral strap members 13, 14, it can be efficiently and economically mass produced. The only requisites of the plastic material utilized in the manufacture of the present sandal are that it be durable and long-lasting, and that it be resilient and elastic so that said sandal Will conform closely to the contour of the Wearer's foot, yielding somewhat during walking or movement in order to provide maximum comfort for the wearer.

From the foregoing detailed description it Will be seen that the present invention provides a new and improved sandal structure having several important advantages over conventional sandals. Unlike prior flat-soled Sandals, the sandal comprising the present invention features'a sole having specially-formed dished portions and elevated peripheral edge portions which not only provide support to enhance the comfort of the wearer, but which prevent said sandal from shifting on the wearefs foot, or slipping off. In addition, said improved sandal can be economically produced on high speed automatic molding equipment, and it is durable and long-lasting in construction.

It is to be understood that While a preferred form of the present invention has been illustrated and described herein, numerous variations or modifieations thereof Will undoubtedly occur to those skilled in the art. What is intended to be covered herein is not only the illustrated form of the invention but also any and all variations or modfications thereof as may come within the spirit of said invention.

What I claim is:

1. A sandal molded of one piece from resilient and fiexible plastic material, comprising: a sole having a toe end and a heel end; a dish-like depression formed in the top surface of said sole adjacent the heel end thereof adapted to accommodate the heel of a Wearer's foot; a raised peripheral edge portion formed on said sole top surface partially surrounding said heel depression; a hump-like protrusion formed on said sole top surface intermediate its length providing a plantar arch support; a shallow dish-like depression formed in said sole top surface adjacent the toe end thereof adapted to accommodate the ball portion of a wearer's foot; a raised, arcuate ridge formed on the top surface of said sole and extending transversely thereacross in a position to underlie the juncture between a Wearefs toes and the ball portion of his foot, said raised and curved ridge forming a stop adapted to prevent the Weareris foot from slipping or shifting longitudinally, a raised peripheral edge portion formed on said sole top surface partially surrounding said toe end depression, said dish-like depressions and raised edge portions cooperating to provide support means for the wearer's foot preventing his foot from slipping or shifting relative to said sole; and strap means molded integrally in one piece With said sole and formed to extend over the instep of a Weareris foot, said integral one-piece plastic sole and strap unit being resilient and elastic to conform closely to the contour of a wearefs foot and to yield during Walking or movement.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,760,279 8/1956 Jones et al. 36 32 X 3,336,683 8/1967 Schellkopf 36-115 3,352,033 11/ 1967 Colley 36-11.5

FOREIGN PATENTS 446,120 3/ 1968 Switzerland.

PATRICK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner 

